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God, this party was boring.
Zane Roth sipped his wine and glanced around the ballroom at the Mandarin Oriental. The party held the Who’s Who of New York society, all dressed up in their glittering best. The ceiling shimmered with a sea of crystal lights, tall flower arrangements dominated the tables, and the wall of windows had a great view of the Manhattan skyline.
Everything was picture perfect…and boring.
If it wasn’t for the charity auction, he wouldn’t be dressed in his tuxedo and dodging annoying people.
“I’m so sick of these parties,” he muttered.
A snort came from beside him.
One of his best friends, Maverick Rivera, sipped his wine. “You were voted New York’s sexiest billionaire bachelor. You should be loving this shindig.”
Mav had been one of his best friends since college. Like Zane, Maverick hadn’t come from wealth. They’d both earned it the old-fashioned way. Zane loved numbers and money, and had made Wall Street his hunting ground. Mav was a geek, despite not looking like a stereotypical one. He’d grown up in a strong, Mexican-American family, and with his brown skin, broad shoulders, and the fact that he worked out a lot, no one would pick him for a tech billionaire.
But under the big body, the man was a computer geek to the bone.
“All the society mamas are giving you lots of speculative looks.” Mav gave him a small grin.
“Shut it, Rivera.”
“They’re all dreaming of marrying their daughters off to billionaire Zane Roth, the finance King of Wall Street.”
Zane glared. “You done?”
“Oh, I could go on.”
“I seem to recall another article about the billionaire bachelors. All three of us.” Zane tipped his glass at his friend. “They’ll be coming for you, next.”
Mav’s smile dissolved, and he shrugged a broad shoulder. “I’ll toss Kensington at them. He’s pretty.”
Liam Kensington was the third member of their trio. Unlike Zane and Mav, Liam had come from money, although he worked hard to avoid his bloodsucking family.
Zane saw a woman in a slinky, blue dress shoot him a welcoming smile.
He looked away.
When he’d made his first billion, he’d welcomed the attention. Especially the female attention. He’d bedded more than his fair share of gorgeous women.
Of late, nothing and no one caught his interest. Women all left him feeling numb.
Work. He thrived on that.
A part of him figured he’d never find a woman who made him feel the same way as his work.
“Speak of the devil,” Mav said.
Zane looked up to see Liam Kensington striding toward them. With the lean body of a swimmer, clad in a perfectly tailored tuxedo, he looked every inch the billionaire. His gold hair complemented a face the ladies oohed over.
People tried to get his attention, but the real estate mogul ignored everyone.
He reached Zane and Mav, grabbed Zane’s wine, and emptied it in two gulps.
“I hate this party. When can we leave?” Having spent his formative years in London, he had a posh British accent. Another thing the ladies loved. “I have a contract to work on, my fundraiser ball to plan, and things to catch up on after our trip to San Francisco.”
The three of them had just returned from a business trip to the West Coast.
“Can’t leave until the auction’s done,” Zane said.
